New Delhi, Nov 29 (IANS): MP Manoj Tiwari on Friday criticised the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and accused it of copying the BJP and promising Rs 1,000 per month financial sops to the women of Delhi on the lines of the ‘Ladli Behna’ scheme of the party in states ruled by it and said that the AAP’s time in Delhi is over and now it's the BJP's turn to deliver .
Speaking with IANS, Tiwari questioned why the AAP government had not provided similar support during its 10 years in power in the national Capital.
"For 10 years, the AAP was in power. Could they not give money to women then? Now that the BJP is doing it in other states they are following suit," he said, citing similar schemes for financial aid to women in states like Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Haryana, where women receive direct financial benefits in their bank accounts from the state government.
Tiwari stated that the BJP’s upcoming manifesto would include significant initiatives for women, contrasting it with the AAP's alleged failure to deliver on promises during their tenure.
"The AAP’s time is over; now it's the BJP's turn to deliver," he said.
The ‘Ladli Behna Yojana’ was initially launched by former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan months before the Assembly elections held in November last year.
For the first few months, the state government used to give Rs. 1000 per month to women, which was later increased to Rs 1250.
‘Ladli Behna Yojana’, was an extension of Chouhan’s another flagship – ‘Ladli Laxmi Yojana’ for newborn girl children.
The BJP had announced this scheme at the time when it was facing high anti-incumbency against nearly two decades of its rule in Madhya Pradesh. However, when the results of the Assembly elections were out, the BJP returned with an absolute majority.
Political observers and even the Opposition Congress had stated that the ‘Ladli Behna Yojana’ proved a game changer for the BJP.
Since then the party has repeated the scheme in different states, including in the just-concluded Maharashtra Assembly polls where the resounding victory of the MahaYuti is being credited in part to the incentive scheme for women of the state.
Remarking on the protest staged by the AAP in Parliament’s premises over the escalating crimes in the national Capital, he accused the AAP government of emboldening criminals in Delhi.
The protest highlighting the worsening law and order situation in Delhi was led by AAP leaders, including Sanjay Singh, Raghav Chadha, and Sandeep Pathak,
Tiwari told IANS, "The AAP is doing the work of spoiling law and order in Delhi. The morale of criminals is increasing."